Month: July 2016

In today’s show, we report on the study of a recent study on robot babies and their efficacy in curbing teen pregnancy.

Do you remember those baby dolls that mimic the action of real babies? You would have come across them in life science classes at school. They were introduced in classes to prevent teens from getting pregnant. The idea behind it is that when teens handled these robot baby toys, they would get put off the idea of getting pregnant. These robot baby toys behave exactly like babies. They are programmed to imitate the action of real babies and require constant feeding, diaper changing, burping, rocking to stop their crying and so on. In some cases, the robot babies were seen to cry throughout the entire night just like real babies.

However, a new study done by a group of around three thousand teenagers in Western Australia reported that these babies actually increased the rates of teen pregnancy rather than reducing it. The studies further concluded that since the kids who received the robot babies received attention from their parents and peers and sometimes were even offered help in taking care of the babies. This has something to do with reducing the negative impact of teen pregnancies.

However, RealityWorks, the manufacturer of these dolls indicated that they have proven effective and several schools have placed in orders for more of these dolls. They said that it was a common belief among students to think hard about parenting and the hardships and sacrifices it entails once they receive a robot baby. Also, the manufacturer claims that several educators prefer these babies so that students can get a hands-on experience with parenting.

However, the study claims that there are more than these robot toys that play a role in teen pregnancy rates.